Amber Stout

“Eggs Marks the Spot” is Stout’s innovative program for students to learn about the lifecycle of a chicken and where their food originates from. Third-grade students at Jefferson Elementary School will follow the growth of a chicken from an egg to adult by setting the eggs in an incubator in the classroom. Participants will monitor the embryos, adjust the temperature and humidity, and complete journal activities over the first 21 days it takes to hatch the poultry. After the chickens have hatched, the students will care for the animals before they are released on a local farm at the end of the year during a class field trip with their teachers and parents. On a second field trip to a pheasant hatchery, students will gain an understanding of how a large-scale incubation company operates. Although the third-grade students will participate in the hands-on program, they will be assigned “buddies” in the first grade to report their findings to and help the younger students learn about the process. They will also have the opportunity to share their experience with their families on a special “hatch day”. Stout, who lives in Pierre, hopes the students will learn valuable, lifelong lessons throughout the program.